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Course overview
On or around AD33 a Jewish man called Jesus from Nazareth, in Galilee, was crucified by the Roman authorities after a period of preaching and teaching in the region –pretty much every serious historian of the ancient world can agree on this much. But the earliest writings in the New Testament also claim that this man Jesus had been “raised” by God, and refer to him as “the Lord” and as the “Son of God”. By the time of the Nicene Council, in 325, Christians agreed that this “one Lord Jesus Christ” was “the only begotten Son of the Father”, “very God of very God”. The man from Nazareth was now thought to be the one “by whom all things were made”, the moment when God was “incarnate”. By 451 AD, Christian theologians agreed that Jesus Christ should be said to have two natures(divine, and human), but to be one person. Explaining exactly what this was supposed to mean was not straightforward, however, and debate continued to rage for some time afterwards.
So how did all these ideas arise? Why did they? And does any of it make sense? What does it really mean to say that the wandering Jewish teacher from Nazareth was—and is—fully God, whilst also being fully human? In this course we examine a few of the most important moments in this astonishing intellectual movement, and explore some of the questions that it raises. If God has “become” human, does this mean that God has changed? If Jesus was God, was the death of Jesus also the death of God?
We will also explore some of the most important recent writing on this subject, which shows that the theology of the incarnation is still very much alive (and sometimes kicking).
1. God with us
2. Incarnation and trinity
3. Chalcedon: Two natures, one person
4. Incarnation and kenosis
5. 'Deep' incarnation
To begin the course, we will consider the meanings of two phrases that are used to describe the idea of incarnation: one from the Nicean Creed, the other from the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The first talks about a descending movement: ‘for us men and for our salvation, he came down from heaven’. The second talks about an ascending movement: ‘the Son of God assumed a human nature, in order to accomplish our salvation in it’. From there, we will explore what the significance of the word ‘with’ is: what does it mean to be ‘with’ another, and what might mean for God to be ‘with’ us, through the incarnation?
In this session we begin to explore the formation of Christian orthodoxy in this area: how to understand the claim that Jesus, a human, was also the eternal Son of the Father. We look in particular at the work of Irenaeus, and Athanasius, and see how a view about what it is to be saved shapes these arguments. Along the way, we also consider the seeds of the doctrine of the Trinity, and what this has to do with Incarnation.
Participants may wish to read the chapter by Richard Baukham, who explores how first century Jewish Christians may have understood who Jesus was (as opposed to wha the was), and the chapter by Gerald O’Sullivan, which gives a neat introduction to the ‘Jewish matrix’ of the Christian understanding of Jesus. Those who are especially keen might want to read a short introduction to Irenaeus of Lyon, whose work we will consider in the session.
In this session, we will look at issues that were – it was hoped! - addressed at the Council of Chalcedon, which put forward a way of talking about the ‘One Lord Jesus Christ’ that was (mostly) accepted as definitive for Christian orthodoxy: that of “two natures” in “one person”. We will explore why this was taken to be so important, and think about where it leaves us.
To prepare for this session, it might be useful to watch two of the videos from Fr Thomas Weinandy’s online lecture series, which will give an account of Athanasius’s views on incarnation, which were developed around and shortly after the Council of Nicea, in 325. They can be watched here:
Christology in the Early Church - Episode #14 The Nicene Crisis, Part I
Christology in the Early Church - Episode #20 Athanasius and the Incarnation
You may also want to read some selections of Athanasius’ work, from the pdf below.
In this session, we explore the way in which we might connect the narrative of the gospels, which culminate in the Passion, with the idea of incarnation. We look especially at the work of Kathryn Tanner, who has emphasised the need for a dramatic account of incarnation, which is a process of re-working, culminating in the Word’s entry into death. In the audios, we will also think about how Hans Urs von Balthasar saw these issues, and how he connected the kenosis of incarnation with the life of the Trinity.
Finally, to conclude the course and to provide something to reflect upon (probably for months!) we will explore the idea of ‘deep incarnation’, put forward by Nils Gregerson, who has reflected upon the connections between incarnation, ecology and evolution. A summary of his position is available in the pdf below.
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
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Stuart is the Theology Lead at LJC. He graduated with a degree in Literature and Theology from the University of Hull in 2000. From 2003-9 he studied Philosophical Theology part-time at the University of Nottingham, whilst continuing to work in the third sector with vulnerably-housed or homeless people, and young asylum seekers (as well as pulling pints in a pub). He was Lecturer at York St John University for almost a decade, before moving to London Jesuit Centre in 2021. He now lives in South East London, and spends as much time as he can in the woods.
